Roses and Thorns (The Evolution)
by c59t
Summary: Contains whiterose, bumbleby, and spoilers. Modern Setting AU/Faunus exist. For 15 years of her life, Ruby's family had been a long distance one. She lived with her Mom in Vale, while her sister and Dad lived in Patch. They met up every summer in Mistral, that is, until Summer passed away. Ruby now faces new struggles, including a new home, school, and group of people to deal with.
1. Chapter 1

Roses and Thorns: Prologue

" _This will be the day we've waited for! This will be the day we open up the doors! Don't wanna' hear your absolutions, I hope ready for a revolution! Welcome to a world of new solutions! Welcome to a world of bloody evolu-..."_

"What the- uuuhg!"

"Did your phone die?"

"Yeah."

"About time," Summer cracked a smile, "now I can finally talk to my daughter."

Ruby sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. "Sorry mom… I just really enjoy this music."

Summer let out a light chuckle. "It's alright kiddo. It just gets lonely after being in a car for over three hours without saying anything… and this darn rain isn't helping."

"Do you think it will stop?" Ruby asked while putting her headphones away.

"Oh, I hope. The windshield wipers aren't helping at all."

"...You think dad and Yang are out playing in it?"

Summer chuckled again. "Probably; they're such children at hearts... you remember when we went to the beach house last year?"

"How could I not!" Ruby smiled, "It rained the whole time so we couldn't do anything, then Dad and Yang decided to see who could stand out in it the longest and they both got colds!"

"Then they dragged us out there and we had a huge water fight… we all ended up getting _really_ sick!" They both laughed at the memory.

"Yeah, but it was worth it!" Ruby gleamed.

"It sure was." Summer sighed happily.

"I can't wait to see them again… I really miss them."

"I do too Ruby... but we're only another half hour away, so it won't be long." Summer reassured.

"I just wish we weren't a long distance family…" Ruby sighed.

"So do I Ruby, but June is really the only time we get the chance to meet up. We're just lucky I convinced my boss to let me have this week off of work."

Ruby stared out of the window with a dull expression. "...Why did Dad and Yang cancel this year again?"

"Because Yang caught a virus and didn't want to give it to us, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Ruby sighed, "...but why did we have to wait three whole months?"

Summer's eyebrow twitched slightly in annoyance. "Because that's how long it took me to convince my boss." She sighed.

Ruby sighed back, then made a silly face at her Mom. "Ya' know your boss is a jerk." She said in a silly voice.

"Are you trying to mock her?" Summer chuckled, then raised the pitch of her voice to sound like a witch, "because if so she sounds more like _this_."

"No I think it's more like _this_ ," Ruby replied, then proceeded to squabble like a chicken.

Summer and Ruby looked at each other for a moment, then barked out laughing.

"Okay, okay, stop making fun of my boss, I'm gonna get fired!" Summer giggled.

"Only if she finds out!" Ruby chuckled.

Eventually, their laughter died down and it was peacefully quiet. "...You know, you and I are children at hearts too." Ruby smiled.

"I guess it runs in the family," Summer replied, "although, you _are_ a child."

"I'm fifteen Mom," Ruby countered, then pointed her thumb at herself confidently, "I'm full teenage material!"

"Hm." Summer smiled. "Maybe to you, but to your sister, Dad, and I, you'll always be the baby in the family."

Ruby threw her head back and groaned in embarrassment, causing Summer to laugh again.

"I'm just messing with you, honey."

"I know." Ruby deadpanned. She tilted her head slightly so she could see outside the window. The rain was pouring down harder than earlier, so much so that outside looked like a fuzzy blur of gray. "Mom, can you even see in this?" She asked.

"I got used to it." Summer replied.

Ruby sighed. " _How_ much longer 'till we get there?"

"About half an hour, hopefully."

Ruby groaned again, but not as dramatically as before. "You said that, like, ten minutes ago."

"I know Ruby. The rain is just making things difficult… we'll have to be a little more patient."

"We've been patient for over a year now." Ruby frowned.

Summer took a moment to think. "...You remember what I used to tell you when you were little?"

"Of course," Ruby smiled slightly, "you still tell it to me."

Summer returned a warm smile. "And I'll never stop. Every rose has its thorn, and it may hurt. But if you take good care of it, and treat it right,"

"It'll bloom into something beautiful." Ruby finished.

"Yep, so whenever you're you're feeling down, let your flowers grow."

Ruby smiled at her Mom's old motto. "Somehow that never ceases to work for me."

"Good," Summer leaned over and quickly kissed Ruby on the head, "then never forget it."

Ruby smirked, "Of course I won't. Who do you think I am?"

"Your father's daughter." Summer smirked.

"Hahah! Good point Mom, but I'm also _your_ daughter so…."

"Oh, hush." Summer laughed.

Ruby laughed as well, but she was suddenly interrupted by a loud, nerve-racking horn.

"RUBY!" Summer pulled Ruby towered her into a protective position. Before Ruby could register what was happening, a car from the opposite side of the road skid and crashed into them, causing their car to lose control and spin off of the road. Ruby's head jerked sideways from the impact and crashed into the window beside her, causing her to lose all consciousness.

... _To be continued_


	2. Chapter 1: A New Begining

Chapter 1: A New Beginning

Ruby awoke to the loud buzzing of her alarm clock. She poked her head out from under her covers and pried her eyes open, blinking until her sight adjusted to the dimness of her bedroom. She looked up at her nightstand where her alarm clock sat and read '5:30 am'. The annoying alarm continued to sound until Ruby untangled her arm from under her blanket, and lazily slapped her hand against the off button. She stayed in that position for a bit, feeling too tired to get up. Her eyes started to drift closed again... until her second alarm went off from across the room.

Ruby groaned and sleepily rubbed her eyes as she got out of her bed and tiredly trudged over to her desk. Instead of turning the alarm off, she grumpily tossed it into her dirty clothes bin, partly muffling the sound.

She slumped back over to her bed and plopped down face first onto the mattress, causing the top blanket to poof up and fall back down around her. She let out a long sigh and let herself fall back asleep, but never got the chance as her phone's alarm went off as well.

Ruby groaned into her pillow, "Uuuuuugggggghhhhh whyyyyyyy."

She sat up in her bed and grabbed her phone off of the nightstand, squinting at the bright screen as she tapped the "dismiss" icon. Ruby tossed her phone aside and stretched, all while letting out a deep yawn.

' _Today's the day.'_ She thought while looking at her calendar. The words "Start school at Beacon!" where written in big, red letters over the current day.

In previous conversations, Ruby's older sister, Yang, mentioned a lot about the school. She remembered stories Yang told her about her friends causing all sorts of trouble and having fun. Ruby had always wanted to meet them, but most of all, she wanted to reunite with their childhood friend, Blake.

Ruby and Yang met Blake when they were very little, as their families were close. But over the years, it became a struggle to get everyone to meet up due to jobs, schools, and how Ruby and her mom lived in a completely different state. Eventually, Ruby and Blake never got the chance to see each other anymore. The last time they actually saw each other was twelve years ago, so Ruby was extremely excited to hear that Blake went to Beacon as well.

Ruby felt a wave of relief wash over her and she smiled at the thought. She wasn't really looking forward to starting at a new school in the middle of the semester, but to know that she would have her two best friends at her side gave her the hope and confidence she needed. Especially with what she'd been through the past three weeks...

Ruby's smile suddenly faltered, but she shook her head and patted her cheeks twice. "Stop it." She scolded herself. She was finally starting to look on the bright side of things; she didn't want to mess it up.

Ruby stood up with a determined look on her face. "Today is the first day of your new school experience Ruby Rose! So let's make it a great experience!" Ruby raised her fist into the air and forced a bigger smile on her face. Suddenly, her door swung open and her sister leaped into her room.

"Yeah, you go Ruby!" She cheered.

"Yang?! How long have you been outside my room?!" Ruby gasped in shock.

"Huh? Only a few seconds," she answered, "I was going to see if you were awake, but then I heard you cheering yourself on and I wanted to join in." Yang smiled.

"Ah." Ruby lowered her fist and smiled warmly at her sister. "Thanks."

Yang stood up straight and walked over to Ruby to hug her. "I'm glad you're feeling better."

Ruby hugged Yang back, "... Me too."

Yang tilted her head so it was resting on top of Ruby's. They stayed that way for a bit, feeling comfort in each other's embrace.

After another minute or two, they released the hug so Ruby could get ready.

"I'll be outside with Dad." Yang said while leaving her room.

"Alright," Ruby responded as she headed over to her closet, "just give me five minutes."

Yang nodded and closed the bedroom door behind her.

Ruby ruffled through her closet, looking for a shirt she felt like wearing. She decided on a black t-shirt with a logo of the moon on it, except the moon was broken into jagged pieces that scattered across the side. She picked out a pair of jeans that were ripped at the knees (in which she did to make them look "cool") and changed into her outfit. She slipped on a pair of black combat boots and grabbed her signature red hoodie off of her desk chair. She tied the hoodie around her waist, looked in the mirror, and decided to just put it on.

Ruby grabbed her phone, put it in her pocket and headed into the bathroom. After brushing her hair and teeth, she opened the supplies cabinet and took out a rag, bandage, and a bottle of liquid medicine. She studied her face in the mirror; her black eye was finally gone, but the right side of her face still looked a little pink and swollen. She lifted up her bangs to reveal a gross looking bandage and she carefully, yet quickly, peeled it off, revealing the long, nasty cut left behind from the crash.

Ruby winced slightly and poured some of the medicine onto the rag and held it to her forehead. She winced again as it stung, and once it stopped, she put the new bandage on in place of the old one. After she put the medicine away and cleaned up the rest, she gave herself one final check in the mirror.

She looked nice and cleaned up, as she wanted to leave a good first impression on the new school. The only thing that really stuck out was her bandage, and if one were to look really closely, they'd notice the little red nicks that speckled down the pinkish area of her face.

They were tiny, temporary scars left behind, and Ruby shuddered as she remembered the doctor having to pull each and every little shard of glass out of her face from the car window. Thankfully, that's all the crash did to her, along with a concussion and a sprained ankle that had healed up by now. The rest of the damage was blocked by Summer, as she shielded Ruby from the-

Ruby heard the sound of three little pats into the bathroom sink, and she looked down to see that they had been from tears. Her vision started to get blurry and she squeezed her eyes shut, all while taking a deep breath. ' _You're okay.'_ She reminded herself, and thought it a dozen times more. She mustered up the best smile she could, and opened her eyes again, revealing a happy, yet faltered, reflection in the mirror. ' _Let your flowers grow.'_

After another few moments, Ruby took another deep breath and exited the bathroom. She retrieved her backpack from her room and headed outside where Yang and their father were waiting.

"You ready?" Yang asked as she noticed Ruby step outside. She was sitting on her motorcycle while waiting.

"As I'll ever be." Ruby answered half heartedly.

Ruby's father, Taiyang, walked over to her and gave her a quick hug. "Are you sure kiddo? If you want you can take another day off."

"I'm alright Dad," Ruby smiled as she pulled away, "plus, I've got Yang with me."

Her sister gave her a nod and tossed her a helmet. "Yep... and if you want, I can stick with you during first period. I have study hall, and I'm caught up with everything." Yang offered.

"That'd be great." Ruby smiled as she put on her helmet.

"Alright you two, have a good day, okay?" Tai said as he climbed into his car.

"You got it Pops," Yang answered while she put on her own helmet, "Oh, also, we'll be home late today."

Tai quirked up an eyebrow. "What, why?"

"...Well you see," Yang gestured her arms out for emphasis, "I decided to join a club."

"...Uh huuuuh." Tai nodded dully.

"And this _club_ takes place for an hour after school,"

"Yep."

"But it's only today!... and maybe sometime again in the future depending on what I do..."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, and the thing is, I have to give you a sheet of paper to sign to back give to my teacher."

"Mmhm."

"Yep, but it's nothing to worry over of course."

"So what is it you do?"

"Oh, you know… stuff... like studying and whatnot."

"So detention?"

Yang faltered slightly, "Whaaaaaaat? Nooooooooo…. Its um, like, the opposite of that."

Taiyang squinted his eyes in suspicion. "Are you sure? Because this is the third time this has happened this week, and the last two times were completely different stories."

"Uhhhhh…."

"..."

"..."

Yang slumped over in defeat.

"That's what I thought." Tai sighed. "So, what did you do this time?"

"...Food fight." Yang answered dejectedly.

"What, again?!"

"Hey, _Nora_ started it this time, not me." Yang pouted.

"That's not the point, Yang!" Tai facepalmed, "If you get detention one more time this week you'll be _suspended!_ "

"...I know…" Yang sighed.

"Ruby?" Tai called, startling her a little.

"Yes Dad?"

"Watch your sister for me, would ya?"

"Aye aye captain!" Ruby saluted.

"Oh come on you guys, humor me a little! What would _you_ have done if someone tied your shoes at the top of a flag pole?!"

"She did that to you?!" Ruby gawked.

"It was most likely payback for what Yang did to her two days ago." Tai deadpanned.

"What did you do?" Ruby asked.

"I slipped a spider down her shirt, that is _nothing_ compared to what she did!"

' _Yes it is!'_ Tia and Ruby thought in unison.

"And what about the first detention…?" Ruby asked.

"Mercury hid his pet snake Ren's locker. Unfortunately for Merc, Nora witnessed him do it while eating an apple aaaand it ended up with all of us in a food fight… somehow all three of those days ended up in a food fight."

Tai did a double facepalm and sighed. "Why do you all insist on pranking each other all the time?"

"Because it's funny." Yang answered nonchalantly.

"Well, now I'm not sure if I'm excited or nervous to meet them." Ruby joked.

"No no, you'll love them, I promise," Yang beamed, "Besides, if any of them lay a _finger_ on you they'll have to deal with _me._ " Yang smirked while pounding her knuckles together.

"Just _please_ don't do anything reckless today. You seriously can't afford to get another detention." Tai sighed.

Yang shot him finger guns, "No prob, Bob!"

"Ruby, I mean it, keep an eye on her." Tai said as he started up his car.

To Yang's dismay, Ruby chuckled and nodded, all while joining her sister on the motorbike.

"Alright, well, I don't want to be late, so I'm heading out. I love you both!" Tai waved.

"Love you too Dad!" They said together.

At that, Tai pulled out of the driveway and drove off, leaving the sisters to do the same.

"You ready baby sis?" Yang asked while starting up her motorcycle.

Ruby groaned, "Yang, I'm only two years younger than you. _Please_ don't call me that."

"Nope!" Yang smirked, "You'll always be my baby sis. Now let's go!"

Ruby's groan was drowned out by the roaring of the motor, and Yang steered them toward the direction of Beacon Academy.

…

The golden-yellow motorcycle pulled to a stop in the student parking lot. The humming of the engine died down as Yang took the key out of the ignition, followed by the sound of the alarm setting.

"Alright baby sis," Yang said as she pulled off her helmet, "welcome to Beacon!"

" _Yang,_ " Ruby groaned, "I told you not to call me thaaa…" Ruby's jaw dropped the moment her eyes set on the school.

The view was _breathtaking_. Instead of an ordinary high school building, it looked like a royal castle from medieval times. It had a beautiful garden of healthy, fresh-cut grass that stretched around the entrance,and there was a thin moat in between. The trees were in full bloom, and were planted in neat files around the building, and small, neatly trimmed bushes were placed under flower- filled window sills. There were also small, stone pathways to walk on, and the walkway was decorated with light poles and flags representing Beacon. A large light tower peeked over the main building, giving it a final touch. Overall, the scenery was beautiful, and Ruby found herself loving it immensely.

"Woah…" Ruby stared wide eyed at the building with her mouth agape.

"I know, right?" Yang replied with face-breaking grin.

Ruby was about to reply, but someone else beat her to it.

"There you are Yang! I've been looking everywhere for…. Ruby?"

A tall, quiet looking girl with black hair and golden eyes approached them; quickly at first, but she slowed down to a stop when she saw Ruby. As soon as Ruby saw the little black bow resting on top of the girl's head, she knew who it was immediately.

"BLAKE!" Ruby let her backpack fall to the ground and ran towards her old friend.

"RUBY!" Blake laughed and held out her arms so Ruby could jump into them, also letting her bag fall on the gravel. She spun Ruby around a few times before setting her down.

"How have you been all these years?! I've missed you so much! Look at you! Last I saw you, you were so little!" Blake said, pulling away from the hug to look at Ruby.

"Me?! Look at you! You could be a model!" Ruby grinned.

"Pff, hardly!" Blake laughed again, hugging Ruby once more.

Ruby sighed into the hug. "I've missed you so much, Blake! I've been alright."

"Good." Blake pulled away from Ruby and patted her on the shoulder. "It's great to see you again." She smiled.

"It's great to see you too." Ruby smiled back.

"Blakey!" Yang cheered and ran towards their old friend, ready to pull the girl into a hug. She came to an immediate halt the moment Blake gave her a death-glare.

" _You_ are in a load of trouble, _Yangy."_ Blake growled.

Yang blinked twice and gulped, "Heh..heheh… I see you found out…" she laughed nervously.

Ruby gave the girls a confused look, "Found out about what…?"

"Well Ruby," Blake started while still glaring at Yang, " _That one_ and I are supposed to give a presentation tomorrow over our class reading, but it turns out _she didn't even read the book._ "

"Oh, come on Blake, everyone already knows what happens!" Yang pouted.

" _That's not the point,"_ Blake sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, "...look, we'll talk about this later...okay? For now we should get to class. We'll be late otherwise."

"Alright, alright," Yang replied, "I'm sorry." She walked over to Blake and swung her arm around her shoulder. "I'll get it done tonight. I promise."

The way Yang smiled and playfully winked at Blake made the girl suddenly spin around and walk toward the building. "L-lets just head in." She said while picking her bag off the ground and heading inside.

Ruby glanced between the two curiously, and Yang just shrugged. They decided to leave it at that and followed Blake inside the school.

Once the sisters caught up to her, Blake sighed with a luke-warm smile. "I can't believe it's already been twelve years…" she said softly.

"Yeah, I know," Ruby smiled, "It's crazy." Her smile suddenly faltered, as she remembered why she was even there to begin with.

Noticing the mood shift, Yang put her arm around Ruby in a half-hug. "But that's apart of what makes it so special; three best friends staying just as close as before, no matter the distance."

Ruby felt the tension loosen a bit. "Yeah… you're right." She smiled, but her eyes still threatened to tear up.

Blake walked over to the other side of Ruby and put her arm around her as well. "It's alright Ruby," she said softly, "we're here for you. You'll be alright."

"I know." Ruby hiccuped. She quickly wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. "Thank you."

The girls stopped walking for a quick group hug. Things were tough on Ruby, and right now the only thing she needed was comfort.

Things were hard on Yang as well, but she was recovering a little better than her sister. Learning about the incident was hard, but to be _apart_ of the incident…? She couldn't even imagine the pain Ruby was going through. She related to it, as Summer was the closest person to a mom she'd ever had after her own left, but she knew her grief was a lot less damaging than Ruby's. The poor girl blamed herself for what happened, as to why, Yang wasn't sure, but she knew it wasn't true. If anything, the poor weather was the cause of the accident, but no matter how many times she tried to reassure Ruby, the girl wouldn't listen. She'd pretend like she understood, but Yang always saw the doubt in her eyes.

It made her own eyes water.

She felt a light tap on her shoulder and looked up to see Blake giving her a comforting smile. Yang smiled back and decided it was time to lighten the mood. She released herself from the hug, and to Ruby's surprise, scooped her up and heaved her over her shoulder.

"Ah! Yang, what are you doing!?" Ruby giggled.

"Cheering you up!" Yang giggled back. She pranced around the now empty hallway and the sisters broke into laughter.

Blake giggled as well and followed the two to their classroom.

"Do you have class with us?" Ruby smiled, as she noticed Blake didn't make any suggestions she had to go another way.

"Yes," Blake smiled, "Yang sent me a pic of your schedule in excitement. We all share a few classes."

"Awesome!" Ruby cheered, and Yang spun them around again.

"Hey Yang, you can put me down now." Ruby giggled, as she was starting to get dizzy.

"Why," Yang teased, "We could make a grand entrance!"

"I don't need a grand entrance!" Ruby laughed and wriggled around in Yangs grip, but to no avail.

"It's your first day! Of course you do!"

Ruby grunted with a smile, "Blake? A little help here?"

Blake smiled and nodded while shifting her backpack so it was out of the way. She walked closer to Yang and put her hands on her sides.

"Blake, what are you-"Yang suddenly erupted into laughter as Blake started tickling her. Her grip on Ruby loosed from the attack, and she took it as a chance to escape.

Once Ruby was on the ground again, she re-adjusted her hoodie and fixed her hair from the sudden movement. She paused to see Blake still tickling her sister.

"Blake, you can stop now." She smiled.

"Nope," Blake smirked. "this this is payback for not reading the book!"

At this point Yang was on the ground, fruitlessly trying to cover her stomach and stop Blake's attack. She was wheezing and her laughter was choked. "ohKA- HAHAA- I gEt it! Bahahahahah! IM SOrr- hhehehee-yy!"

Blake gave her a satisfied smile and stopped tickling her, "Alright then. Thank you." She knelt back up off the ground and dusted off her knees.

Yang crawled back to her feet while letting out a few stray giggles and dusted herself off as well. "I can't believe this."

"You pulled yourself into that one." Ruby grinned.

Yang feigned a scoff, "Wow. Unbelievable. I came here to have a good time, and I'm just feeling so attacked right now."

The other two laughed at her remark, but were interrupted when the class bell rang.

"Flip!" Yang yelled, and dashed down the hallway, "We're late!"

Ruby and Blake looked at each other for a second, then sprinted down the hallway as well.

"Yang, wait!" Blake called, and Ruby let out another laugh.

' _This is going to be one heck of a year…'_ Ruby thought. She then smiled warmly, ' _but mom was right; I just need to let my flowers grow.'_

' _Everything is going to be okay.'_

' _...I'm okay.'_

 _~To be continued~_


	3. Chapter 2: Meeting New Faces

Chapter 2: Meeting New Faces

Ruby, Blake and Yang all made a sigh of relief when they took their seats. They made it into the classroom, and the teacher was nowhere to be seen. Blake took her usual spot on the far right side of the room, second row in the front, and Yang sat beside her. Ruby wanted to stay with Yang so she took a seat next to her, hoping that she didn't take someone else's seat. The classroom was a comfortable size, though most of the desks were filled with students. Ruby was hoping that the class would have a small number of people, so to see the classroom packed overwhelmed her. Yang seemed to notice her nervousness, so she reached over and held a comforting grip on Ruby's shoulder, giving her a smile that said ' _it'll be alright.'_ Ruby smiled back with a thankful expression, happy that Yang was there with her.

The door to the classroom opened suddenly, and the clicking of heels could be heard when a tall, young women entered the room. She wore her blond hair in a messy bun, with long side bangs that curled at the ends. She had lime green eyes that hid behind small, pointed-oval glasses. She was wearing a purple and black lab coat, and held a metal board pointer in her right hand.

"Alright class, if I could have your attention." She spoke in a broad voice.

Everyone kept talking.

"Class, if I could please-"

Still talking.

She cleared her throat. "I need your atten-…oh forget it." She harshly slapped her board pointer onto her desk; causing a loud 'CRACK' to sound throughout the room, scaring the students half to death and making them quiet down. Once the room was completely silent, she started again.

"Welcome class, to another day of Astrophysics." She looked around the room. "I suspect you all have studied for the test, as assigned for homework."

Half of the classroom groaned.

"Then again, maybe not," She pushed up her glasses by the bridge, "I will give you ten minutes to prepare. Make sure you're ready by that time." She walked over to her desk, and pulled out her computer to silently take roll.

"There's a test?" Yang and Ruby asked, turning to Blake.

"Yeah, there is. So she might kick you out Yang."

"What about me?" Ruby asked worriedly.

"I'm not sure…" Blake looked down in thought. "You're new, so she might not make you take it."

"I hope she won't. Vale Academy didn't have Astrophysics as a class. I don't really know what it is…"

"It has to do with astronomy, and gravitational force. It is the study of how universal objects interact with each other." The teacher said, now standing next to Ruby. She extended her hand. "Professor Goodwitch. I take it you're the new student?"

"Uh, yes…I am. And my name is Ruby, Ruby Rose." Ruby stood up and shook her hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Ruby; welcome to Beacon." She smiled.

"Thank you." Ruby returned the smile and sat back down. "Oh! About the test…"

Professor Goodwitch stood in thought for a minute. "I'll still have you take it, but it won't go against your grade. Just to see what you know."

Ruby sighed in relief. "Alright."

"As for you Yang, I'm guessing you're here to comfort Ruby?"

"Yep."

"Alright. I'll allow it, but do _not_ help her with the answers. I want to see what _she_ knows."

"I won't."

"Alright then." With that, Goodwitch went back to her desk to get the tests and hand them out.

"You got this lil' sis." Yang said, noticing how Ruby's nervousness came back.

"Thanks…" Ruby said, but this time it was hard for her to relax.

"Besides," Blake added, "didn't you get into high school two years early? Because your GPA got you in?"

Ruby cracked a bashful smile. "Yeah…"

Blake reached in front of Yang and squeezed Ruby's hand. "You'll do great."

Ruby let her smile grow, feeling comfortable again. "Thank you guys…"

Blake smiled and let go to grab her test as it was handed to her, while Ruby received hers as well.

"When you have your test you may begin." Goodwitch announced.

Eventually, everyone got their tests and began to write, save for Yang who sat blankly, not knowing what to do. She decided to pull out her phone to quietly play on her apps until the professor said "No phones." At that Yang pouted slightly and put the device back into her pocket, instead taking out a sheet of paper to scribble on.

After about thirty minutes of testing, Ruby stopped for a minute to take a look at what Yang was drawing. On the sheet of lined paper, Yang was drawing herself slamming her fist into some random guy's face; a big 'KNOCK OUT' was written at the top of the paper in bold letters that could be seen in a comic book. Ruby smiled at Yang's antics and didn't fail to notice how Blake also snuck a look at the drawing, silently trying to hide her snicker at how _even on paper_ Yang loved to fight. Ruby found herself snickering as well, but both girls stopped immediately when Goodwitch looked up to see where the noise was coming from. They both mentally sighed in relief when the professor went back to her work, dismissing the noise.

Ruby went back to her test, filling out answers to the best of her ability. After she finished the last few questions, she sat back in her chair, feeling accomplished. Due to her anxiety, Ruby didn't want to be the first person to turn in the test, so she waited until someone else got up. She didn't have to wait long.

Someone near the back of the room got up, and when they walked by Ruby's desk, she saw that it was a girl with stunningly snow white hair that was up in an off center ponytail, and was dressed like a model from one of those fashion magazines Ruby was never interested in. The way she strutted down the aisle between the desks somehow gave off a vibe of confidence, and when she walked passed, electrifying ice-blue eyes locked on to Ruby's silver ones for a split second. The girl walked up to Professor Goodwitch and handed in her test, and Ruby thought it was a good time to do the same. Ruby grabbed the packet off of her desk and stood up, though she wasn't thinking, and got up at the _perfectly wrong time_. She clashed into the other girl as she slid out of her chair, causing their heads to collide and Ruby to fall backwards, while the other girl let out a grunt and held her forehead in pain.

Ruby held her own head in pain, as a strong headache started pounding in her skull. She never used to get headaches so easily, but ever since she got over her mild concussion, they were less rare to occur. ' _Owww… right on my cut too,'_ she winced.

When her sight came back into focus, the first thing Ruby noticed was the bone chilling glare the other girl gave her. The second thing she noticed was how her test packet flailed through the air and landed in some blonde guy's lap. The final thing she noticed, and the most embarassing, was how _everyone_ was staring at her; how it caught the attention of _every single person_ in the classroom.

Ruby's face turned as red as her namesake, as she had successfully humiliated herself on her first day at Beacon. ' _Great first impression Ruby. Show them your clumsy side…'_

Even though everyone was mature enough to not laugh at the incident, some of them couldn't help but snicker, causing Ruby's embarrassment to grow deeper. The girl she ran into continued to glare at her, but offered her hand to Ruby, who took it hesitantly. When the other girl pulled her up, she discreetly whispered into her ear with a tone that matched her expression.

"Watch where you're going, _Dunce_."

Ruby's heart fell to her stomach, and she felt even worse about the situation.

"S-sorry, I-"

The girl ignored her while rolling her eyes and stormed back over to her desk.

"Are you alright?" Yang whispered when Ruby sat back down.

Ruby carefully put her head on her desk and hid her face in her arms. " _Hm_."

Yang blinked, "Is that a no 'hm' or a yes 'hm'?"

" _Hmmmmm_."

Yang looked at Blake, who returned a concerned expression. Yang turned back to Ruby with a sigh and patted her back twice.

After what felt like years, the bell finally rang, dismissing the students. Ruby quickly grabbed her backpack and stood up, as she wanted to leave as soon as possible. While she waited for Blake and Yang, the blonde guy from earlier walked up to her. He held a concerned expression, and akawordly held out Ruby's packet.

"I believe this is yours..." He mumbled shyly.

"Oh, thank you… sorry about that." Ruby grabbed her packet and her blush returned slightly.

"Don't worry about it," he smiled at her, "Your name is Ruby right? Are you new here?"

"Yeah, I am… but, how do you know my name?"

The boy scuffed his foot on the carpet. "It's… on the packet," he said, while pointing at the papers.

"Ah… right…" Ruby chuckled akawordly.

"Yeah… anyway, I'm Jaune Arc." He extended his hand to her, and Ruby took it.

"Nice to meet you Jaune," she smiled.

"You as well. Uh, is your head okay?" He asked, while shoving his hands in his hoodie pocket. Ruby had to stifle a giggle, as it had a cute cartoon bunny on it.

"My headache has gone down a little, so I'll be fine."

"That's good," Jaune grinned, "well, I have to get to my next class… can we meet up at lunch?"

"Sure." Ruby grinned back; she was happy she made a new friend.

"Cool! I'll see you then." He gave her a slight wave and walked out of the classroom.

' _He seems nice._ ' she thought.

"Who's he?" Yang asked.

"His name's Jaune…. my test flew into his lap when I… fell."

Blake gave Yang a puzzled look. "He's in our last class. You don't recognize him?"

"Not really," Yang suddenly smirked and winked, "I guess I was too busy admiring you to have noticed."

Blake blushed furiously and her faunus ears flattened in her bow. "I-I- you-!"

Yang giggled as Blake suddenly rushed out of the classroom. "Hey, common Blakey, don't leave me!" she called and chased after her.

Ruby smiled at their antics as she walked over to Professor Goodwitch's desk.

"Here's my test. I'm sorry it took a while to turn in…"

Goodwitch smiled at her as she took it. "Don't worry about it. Are you alright?"

Ruby rubbed the back of her neck, "Yeah I'm okay. I just feel bad for upsetting that girl."

The Professor took off her glasses and wiped them with a cloth. "On, I'm sure Miss Schnee will be fine. She can be… overdramatic."

"Schnee?" Ruby asked.

"The girl you bumped into."

"Oh, okay… well, I have to get to my next class…"

"Alright. Have a good rest of your day, Miss Rose."

"Thank you, you too."

Ruby walked outside of the classroom to see Yang and Blake waiting by the door. Blake's blush was gone now, and Yang was pouting.

"Everything okay?." Ruby smiled.

"She hit me." Yang grumbled.

"I playfully swatted her shoulder," Blake corrected, "she's just being a big baby."

Yang broke her feigned expression and crossed her arms with a smirk, "Nah, you're just a meanie."

"What are you, five?" Blake grinned.

"A big 'ol mearner."

"Oi." Blake sighed and started walking. Ruby and Yang followed suit.

"What about you Rubes? Are you okay?" Yang asked.

"Save for the undying embarrassment, I'm fine." Ruby sighed.

"Well, I'm sure the rest of your day will be better." Yang put her arm over Ruby's shoulders in a half-hug.

"That would be nice," Ruby smiled.

"Well, this is where we split up," Blake turned to face the sisters, "are you going to be okay on your own Ruby?"

"I think I can manage," she nodded.

"If not, I'll skip my second class to stay with you," Yang grinned.

"No you won't," Blake deadpanned.

"Aw, common! I don't like calculus!"

"Too bad. We're going," Blake grabbed the hood of Yang's jacket and pulled her to their next class.

"Blakeyyyyyyy!" Yang protested as she was dragged down the hall.

"If you skip class you'll get _another_ detention!"

"I don't care about that!"

Their voices became drowned out by the crowd of students, and Ruby shook her head endearingly. ' _Those two really became close over the years… I wonder if...'_

Ruby stopped her thought for a moment and giggled. " _I'll have to ask Yang later."_

She reached into her back pocket and pulled out her schedule, looking to see where her next class was located. ' _Hmmmmm… Ah! Room 223… that must be upstairs._ ' Ruby looked around for a staircase and found one at the other end of the hallway. As she made her way to her next class, she recognized someone she would much rather avoid. Ruby walked quickly past her, hoping she wouldn't be noticed.

"You!"

Aaaaand she was noticed.

Ruby stopped in her tracks, stiff as a board.

"Ye-yes?" She asked, slowly turning around.

"You're the one who ran into me earlier!" The snowy haired girl strutted up to her, stopping about two feet away.

"About that-"

"You're new here, aren't you?" The girl, "Miss Schnee", interrupted her.

"Y-yes," Ruby sweat nervously.

Schnee crossed her arms with a pout. "Fine. Since you're new, I'll give you a warning. My name is Weiss Schnee." The girl looked at Ruby expectedly, but was only given a blank expression.

" _Schnee."_ She said again, as if it would help Ruby understand.

Ruby blinked a few times while looking away, then looked back at her "Um… I-I don't-"

"Of _course_ not!" Weiss facepalmed and sighed impatiently. She angrily put her hand back down and gave Ruby a cold glare. "Who is our Principle?"

"Um… Professor Ozpine?" Ruby asked, rather than stated.

"Oz _pin,"_ Weiss snapped, "are you aware of who controls him?"

"...The superintendent…" Ruby gulped. She didn't like where this was going.

"Correct. That would be Dr. Polendina. Now, who controls _him?"_ Weiss asked impatiently.

Ruby twiddled her thumbs nervously and her voice shrank. "Th-the school board."

Weiss looked at Ruby for a few seconds and a sinister smirk spread across her face. "Correct."

Ruby began to dread the situation even more as Weiss stepped threateningly close to her. Their noses were almost touching, and Weiss' strikingly blue eyes bore through Ruby's own. It definitely didn't help that her heels made her a few inches taller than Ruby. " _Now_ ," she said lowly, "I want you to connect the dots, and tell me who Jacquis _Schnee_ is."

Ruby shrunk into herself and let out a squeak. "A-a member of the Sc-chool board…?"

Weiss' grin became even more sinister and she almost chuckled. " _Precisely._ In fact, he is the _head of the team._ "

Ruby's felt her heart sink all the way to hell and she shivered.

"And what happened earlier doesn't put you on _any_ good terms with my personal being." Weiss finally stepped away from the poor girl and began walking to her class, but not before she looked at Ruby menacingly over her shoulder. "So be more _careful_ in the future."

Ruby spastically nodded her head, though she didn't understand how simply running into someone could put them in such a bad mood. She chose a safe rout by not saying anything about it.

" _Good_." With that, Weiss walked off.

As soon as she left, Ruby let out a strong breath she had been holding. ' _That was terrifying…_ ' Ruby decided to put the thought away for now, and focused to getting to class on time; she didn't want to be late again.

As soon as she found the room and walked in, Ruby quietly took a seat near the front. Thankfully, this class was much smaller than her first one. Ruby pulled out her binder from her backpack and dug around for things she thought she would need for History of War and Weapons.

She was actually really looking forward to this class, with her love for unique weapons and history of revolution. The shaky feeling she had in her chest started to reside; this class was something she had experience in, and with her Dad being a weapons mechanic, she could always ask him for help if she needed it. Ruby started to look on the bright side; things were starting to get better… until the shaky feeling suddenly rocketed back in her chest. Because just at the other end of the room, sat someone she _really_ didn't want to see again... she saw a certain daughter of a certain school board leader.

 _Weiss Schnee._

And from the looks of it, she wasn't too pleased to see Ruby either.

~ _To be continued~_


	4. Chapter 3: Facing New Problems

**Roses and Thorns**

 **Chapter 3: Facing New Problems**

Ruby fidgeted in her seat, feeling the ice cold glare directed at her from the other side of the room.

' _Oh crap oh no oh God oh why.'_

Ruby dared to glance at the girl for a split second and immediately regretted it as a shiver crawled down her spine. At this point she was ready to run for the hills, but never got the chance as the teacher walked into the classroom.

He was a hefty man, with bushy, grey eyebrows and a mustache that matched. He reminded Ruby of the Monopoly guy, but without the top hat. He had the eyes of a wise man, and a laugh that a kid could mistake for Santa's.

"Hah! Hah! Hah! Good morning students! Another beautiful day is upon us, as is a new student I see!" He gestured toward Ruby, "Come on up here kiddo! Tell us about yourself!"

Ruby hesitated; she was hoping he wouldn't call her up like he had. She didn't really have anything interesting to share about herself, and she didn't feel comfortable with telling anyone about what she had recently been through. Ruby swallowed the lump in her throat and wearily walked to the front of the classroom. She felt a small pang of relief when Weiss looked out of the window, showing disinterest in whatever she had to say.

' _Better than her glaring at me.'_ She thought.

Ruby rubbed the back of her head as everyone, save for Weiss, gave her their attention. Her headache started to return, and her hands felt clammy.

"Uh… hello everyone... my name's Ruby. I-I used to go to Vale Academy, but I..." she paused, trying to avoid the subject, "… _moved_ recently. I skipped two grades because I was super ahead of my year, so I'm pretty happy I get to go here with my sister now."

Ruby blushed slightly as a few students quietly mumbled to each other, whispering things like "Woah that's so cool!" or "I wonder if she'd be willing to help me catch up!" Meanwhile; to her dismay, Weiss simply scoffed and rolled her eyes, as if it weren't a big deal.

Ruby decided to ignore her for now and continued, "You may know her, actually; Yang Xiao Long. We have a few classes together, so I really look forward to it."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Rose," the teacher shook her hand, "the name's Professor Port." They broke out of the handshake and he suddenly laughed, "I would never have expected _you two_ to be sisters!"

Ruby chuckled slightly as well, "Yeah, we get that a lot. We're only halfway related, which is why we don't really look alike."

Which was true; Yang was more like their father: wild blonde hair, tall, and well built. Although while Tai had ocean blue eyes, Yang had lavender eyes with the slightest bit of red in them, and whenever she was mad, her eyes seemed to become a full-on red; like how blue eyes sometimes look grey. Yang's sense of humor also comes from his side of the family, as they constantly held pun battles with each other.

While Yang was very much like their father, she also shared a few qualities with her mom, Raven. She had the same frame as her, and the red in her eyes was a trait that miraculously came from Raven's bright scarlet ones; the only difference between them was that Raven had jet black hair. Yang also got her stubbornness from her mother, although she never liked to admit it.

Ruby, on the other hand, was a spitting image of her mom. Medium length black hair, (although Ruby dyed the tips red) silver eyes, and soft facial features. She was small but strong, and they both had hearts that could open the minds of others. Ruby also had the habit of wearing a big, red hoodie twenty-four-seven, like how her mom always wore a white one.

Overall, Ruby and Yang looked nothing alike, so it always came as a surprise to learn the two of them were sisters. It never really bothered them though, as they've always had a 'my sister is my best friend' relationship, so they didn't really care if people thought they were sisters or not.

"Very interesting Miss Rose, thank you for sharing! I hope you enjoy your stay at Beacon."

"Thank you, Professor."

Ruby walked back to her seat as the class clapped politely. When she sat down, the girl behind her whispered, "Welcome to Beacon Ruby!" with an obvious Australian accent.

Ruby turned her head slightly and thanked her, then put her attention back to the lesson. The Professor started to explain how weapons of a certain caliber affected many different wars... until he started rambling about his childhood and how he had memorized all of the different types of weapons used in all of the different wars by the age of twelve. Ruby listened to his backstory, guessing this was a usual habit of his, though she wondered if he would ever get back to the lesson.

Eventually, he did, and after a while he handed out packets for the class to complete.

"I would like you to work in groups of three," he said, "there are three parts to this assignment, and it's due at the end of class. If you need help, refer to your textbooks on page 283. Unfortunately, I have to take a quick leave to fix the copy machine. I uh... broke it before I got here... but, that's our secret." He put his finger to his lips and furrowed his eyebrows. The class chuckled at his clumsiness and he swiftly left the room.

Ruby sat blankly in her seat as people started getting into groups. She didn't know anyone, so she considered working by herself, until the girl from behind lightly taped on her shoulder.

"Would you like to be a group?"

' _Hmmmm… why not.'_ Ruby thought. ' _After all, she was nice to me earlier… and it can't hurt to make some friends.'_

"Sure, I'll work with y-" Ruby stopped speaking as soon as she saw the girl. She had dark brown hair and equally dark brown eyes. She was small, but still taller than Ruby sitting down. But that's not what caught Ruby off guard. What caught her attention were the big, brown, utterly _adorable_ bunny ears on top of her head.

"-ou." Ruby finished after a small pause. The girl didn't fail to notice Ruby's shocked expression.

"Surprised I'm a Faunus?" The girl asked with a smile.

"Mhm." Ruby nodded, still looking at her ears. "Oh! Sorry! I didn't mean to stare…your bunny ears are just so cute."

"Thanks, though I'm actually a Rabbit Faunus." The girl said with a slight chuckle.

"Oh, sorry," Ruby said, looking a bit embarrassed.

"Don't worry about it. By the way, I'm Velvet." She held out her hand.

"Nice to meet you," Ruby said, shaking someone's hand for the fourth time that day.

"The pleasure's mine," Velvet said, "shall we get started on the packet?"

"Oh, yeah…um, do we have a third person?" Ruby asked.

Velvet hummed and looked around the classroom to find a stray classmate. After spotting one in particular, her ears flattened against her head with a slight pout. "Well, there is _one_."

Ruby matched her line of sight with Velvet's and frowned. ' _No. Nonononono.'_

"By the look on your face, I'm guessing you're in quite a blue with her too, huh?"

"Yep." Ruby sighed.

"...So we can go about this two ways," Velvet claimed, though she was still staring at the girl in question, " _politely_ ask her to join us, and risk her attitude and spite, _or_ work on it ourselves, and risk not having it done on time. And no, we will not be able to get it finished with just the two of us, because the Professor makes these things bloody difficult."

Ruby huffed out a sigh and drooped her head. "I really don't want to lose points for this being late…"

"Agreed," Velvet pinched the bridge of her nose. She suddenly took a deep breath and put on a brave face, "alright, if we're gonna do this, we have to be the bigger people. Show her we're not scared!"

Ruby caught on and nodded eagerly, "Right!"

"We need to be brave!"

"Yeah!"

"Show her what we've got!"

"Absolutely!"

"She's just another sword in the world, but we've got shields!"

"Dang right we do!"

"Alright then, let's get to it!"

Ruby and Velvet briskly stood up from their seats and marched over to Weiss' desk. The moment she gave them stone cold glare they immediately turned around and rushed back to their seats, nearly tripping over one another.

"That was a bad idea."

"A total bust."

"Let's never do it again."

"Agreed."

Once they sat down, they both let out a sigh of defeat.

"Well, I suppose we'll just have to do what we can," Velvet frowned while picking up her pencil, "may you grab a textbook? It'll help a little… a lot more than Weiss would at least."

"What does she have against you?" Ruby asked while reaching for her backpack, "if you don't mind…" she pulled out her textbook and opened it to the requested page.

Velvet leaned back in her chair and smiled slightly, although it didn't convey anything positive. "To be honest, I'm not really sure… she's like that with everyone."

"Heh, yeah no kidding. She chewed my head off this morning because I accidentally clashed heas with her."

"Let me guess, the whole 'My father is the most powerful person in the school system and I will use it against you' shpeal?"

"Yep."

"Oi…"

Ruby sighed once more. "She's used it against you too, huh?"

Velvet chuckled sadly, "She's gotten teachers fired before; including my brother. The poor thing spilled coffee on her old dress."

Ruby felt a small pang of anger in her chest. "She did? Her father's sides with her?"

Velvet looked at Ruby with a dull expression. "Where do you think she gets her ego from?"

Ruby clenched her fist and grit her teeth. She hated people who could be so cruel over something so ridiculous. "That's awful," she mumbled.

She looked up when Velvet put her hand on her own and gave Ruby a soft smile. "Oh, everything's fine now… he found a better job at a coffee shop, as ironic as it is."

Ruby smiled slightly, "Well… good on him then… it still doesn't make it right though…"

"Yes, I know," Velvet gave one last sigh and put her attention back to the packet, "here, we should get started on this."

"Oh yeah," Ruby grabbed her textbook and moved to the empty desk next to Velvet. She put the textbook between them and they got started on the first page.

By the time the bell rang, they made it to the fourth question of the third section. The two leaned back in their chairs and let out a sigh of relief.

"You were right; he does make these difficult." Ruby shook her hand to relieve the pain of writing so fast, as they took turns jotting down the answers.

"Yes, but even so we still got a lot of the packet done. We only have eighteen questions left."

"Thank goodness," Ruby got up to pick up her backpack and put away her things, "When should we finish the rest of it?"

Velvet started putting her things away as well, "Are you free tomorrow night? You could join us for dinner and we could do it then; I've already got plans for lunch."

Ruby put her hands up nervously and sputtered, "Oh, are you sure? I mean we just met and I don't want to intrude or anything!"

Velvet laughed kindly, "Oh, you're fine, Ruby! I'm sure my brother won't mind; it's just us, after all."

"Oh," Ruby smiled and slung her backpack over her shoulder. She didn't know what to make of that, but she decided not to question it, "well, if you insist."

"Alright then," Velvet smiled, "I'll pick you up at seven?"

"Sure, do you need my address?" Ruby reached for her backpack to take out a sticky note, but stopped when Velvet shook her head.

"Yang is your sister, right? We've done something like this before, so I've been there."

"Oh, okay," Ruby adjusted her backpack as the two walked out of the classroom, "sounds good. I'll see you then!"

Velvet nodded, "'Till then!"

At that, the two headed to their next classes, and Ruby pulled out her schedule to see where she needed to go to next. ' _Ah, I have Gym,'_ she thought, ' _it's a good thing Yang reminded me to take an extra pair of clothes.'_ Ruby put her schedule back into her pocket and headed downstairs. She remembered where the gym was because she, Blake, and Yang passed it when they ran to their first class.

As she descended the stairs, her heart dropped for the umpteenth time that day, for a certain white-haired princess was just ahead of her. Ruby scowled, remembering what Velvet told her earlier; she still couldn't believe someone could be so harsh with others, so much as to get them fired.

Ruby decided to stay behind her this time, not wanting to be seen. After a few minutes of walking, Ruby hoped that the girl would head into one of the classrooms nearby, but to no avail. Suddenly, Weiss stopped in her tracks and turned around, causing Ruby to stop as well.

"Why are you following me?" She asked with an annoyed tone.

Ruby suddenly felt her anger fizz out and get replaced with fear, "I-I'm not," Ruby stuttered, "my class is this way."

Weiss scowled at her for a minute.

"What class do you have?"

"Gym."

"You're kidding me," Weiss said, as her annoyance grew.

Ruby felt a pang of worry, "Do you… have gym too?"

"Let me see your schedule," Weiss demanded, ignoring Ruby's question.

"O-okay," Ruby reached into her pocket and did as she was told, cursing herself for being such a coward, "here…"

Weiss took the sheet from Ruby and silently scanned it.

"Are. You. Kidding me?" Weiss asked between gritted teeth.

"Um… what…what is it?" Ruby asked hesitantly, not wanting to upset Weiss even more.

"All of them. Every. Single. One." Weiss looked up at Ruby with a death glare. "We have all of the same classes together."

Ruby's skin went pale.

"We…we do?"

"Every. Single. One."

' _Well that's faaaantastic_ ,' Ruby mentally groaned, ' _absolutely wonderful.'_

 _To be continued_


	5. Chapter 4: New Situations

**Roses and Thorns**

 **Chapter 4: New Situations**

Ruby stood in shock; she couldn't believe this.

"Are you listening to me?" Weiss asked, pulling Ruby out of her trance.

"What?" She asked.

Weiss sighed in annoyance, "Of course not. I said you better stay at least ten feet away from me at all times," she demanded, "understand?"

Ruby quickly nodded her head.

"Good." Weiss shoved Ruby's schedule into her shoulder. "Do _not_ forget it." At that she walked off, not waiting for Ruby to respond.

Ruby held on tightly to her schedule and hid her face behind it, ' _How the heck am I supposed to stay ten feet away from her if we have the same classes?_ ' she sighed, '… _what am I gonna do? What did I ever do to deserve this?'_

Suddenly, a hand grabbed onto Ruby's shoulder from behind, causing her to jump in place.

"Hey, lil' sis! How's your day going?" Yang asked with a wide grin.

"Yang! You scared the loving dog out of me!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Aw man. What am I gonna tell Zwei?" Yang put her hands on her cheeks, feigning worry.

"Yang!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Yang laughed, "So? Has your day gotten any better?"

Ruby slumped over and sighed, "No."

"Oh," Yang's grin fell into a slight frown, "what's wrong?"

Ruby wanted to tell Yang about her whole fiasco with Weiss, but knowing how Yang had a 'momma bear' personality, she decided to say something else. Anything that wouldn't make Yang's earlier drawing come to life.

"I'm just stressing out a little bit…. with everything being new and all…" Now it wasn't a lie, but Ruby still felt bad for not telling Yang the actual reason why she was feeling down.

"…I'm sorry Rubes…." Yang tried to think of something to say that would cheer her up, "Oh! You have gym right now, right?" She asked.

"Yeah…"

"Well guess what?" Yang's grin returned and she playfully poked Ruby's arm, "so do Blake and I."

Ruby felt a wave of relief and she smiled up at her sister, "You do?"

"Yep!" Yang slung her arm over Ruby's shoulders as they headed into the gym. "Now you don't have to be as stressed out... at least, you _better_ not be." Yang said teasingly, tickling Ruby's side.

Ruby giggled and pushed her hand away, "Hahah! I'll try!"

Yang smiled warmly, "Feel better?"

"Yeah…" Ruby returned the smile; Yang always new how to cheer her up.

"Good. That means I'm doing my job right." Yang grinned, taking her arm off of Ruby's shoulders.

"…By the way…where _is_ Blake?" Ruby asked as they turned into another hall, "Wasn't she with you?"

"Only until she dragged me into calculus. Then she went to her class."

"Oh."

"She should be in the gym by now though. Her second class is nearby, so she's one of the first ones in the gym."

"Hm." Ruby thought for a second. "Yang?"

"Yeah?"

"I was wondering… do you still…"

"Still what?"

Ruby cracked a mischievous grin. "Ohhhh, you know… like Blake… like _that_."

Yang suddenly choked. "WHAT? Where is this coming from?!"

Ruby's grin grew, "Don't avoid my question," she laughed cheekily.

"Gah! Ruby, that was _years_ ago! It was just a puppy crush!" Yang blushed, trying to regain her composure.

"But do you?"

Yang faltered, "...Have I told you my other friends, Sun, Nora and Ren also have Gym with us? They are very nice people."

"Yang."

"Though Nora's a bit hyper. Especially when she's eaten a lot of sugar.

"Yang."

"But then again, wouldn't that happen to anyone who has eaten a lot of sugar?"

"Yang!"

"Okay FINE! Yes I still like her!" Yang yelled, giving in to Ruby's question.

"Hahahaaa! Yes! I knew it!~ I knew it!~ I knew it!~" Ruby sang while doing a little dance.

Yang slapped her hand on her forehead and slid it down her face with a sigh.

"You done?"

"Nope!~" Ruby laughed while continuing her little dance.

"Guh. You're overreacting." Yang said with a flat tone.

"No I'm not, this is exciting!" Ruby stopped her little dance and held a wide grin, "But does Blake know yet?"

Yang sighed in defeat, "...Kind of? It's complicated…"

"Ooooh~ give me the deets!"

Yang chuckled, "It's weird hearing you say 'deets'."

"Stop changing the subject."

"I'm not changing the subject."

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"Yep."

"Nope."

"Yang, just tell me!"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Just because."

"But why 'because'?"

"RUBY."

"Yang."

"Stop it!"

"Not until you tell me."

"...Have I mentioned that my good friends Sun, Nora and Ren are in this class?"

"Yang."

"What?"

"Don't avoid the question."

"I'm not."

"But you are."

This continued until they made it into the gym.

Ruby closed her new gym locker and locked it, repeating the code in her head until she had it memorized. She sat down on the small bench in between the row of lockers to tie up the laces on her worn out sneakers. They were old and scuffed up due to how Ruby went on a morning jog most of the time. ' _I can't believe I already wore these down,_ ' she thought, ' _I'm gonna have to buy a more durable pair if I want them to last longer...now that I think about it, I haven't gone on a jog in a long while, not since...'_ Her heart skipped a beat, and she decided not to think about it.

"So, you ready to get obliterated by your big sis in dodgeball today?" Yang asked her as she walked over. A smug look of confidence was written all over her face.

"Oh, I don't know Yang. I'm feeling pretty pumped up, especially after that bet we made." Ruby replied with a look that challenged Yang's smugness.

"What bet?" Blake asked as she walked toward the mirror to fix her slightly crooked bow.

"Nothing!" Yang said quickly.

Blake looked at Ruby.

"Just a little something between us sisters." Ruby grinned and wiggled her eyebrows at Yang, who in turn stuck her tongue out at her.

"…Alright." Blake shook her head and chuckled lightly.

At that, all three girls left the locker room and went out into the gym.

"I'm gonna' to go help set up," Blake said, "I'll meet up with you in a bit."

"Alright."

"Okay."

When Blake left, Yang leaned toward Ruby and spoke softly.

"The penalties are still the same, right?"

"Yep. If I win, you have to tell me what's up between you two. But if I lose, I can't question the topic ever again, _and_ I can't eat any sweets for two weeks."

"Gotchya'," Yang said with a small smirk, "get ready to go on a diet sis, 'cus I'm not losing."

"Ohhh, we'll see about that." Ruby smirked back.

"Alright class, please get into warm up position," The teacher said through a microphone that was clipped onto his shirt, "and Miss Rose, please come see me for a second."

"I'll be right back." Ruby said and ran over to the gym teacher.

"Yes Mr. uh….. Iron…worm?" Ruby asked, trying to remember his name.

"Iron _wood_." He chuckled.

"Oh….sorry." Ruby blushed and scratched the back of her neck.

"Nothing to worry about," he smiled, "anyway, I wanted to let you know that… I'm sorry about your mother…. you see, I uh…. I met her when I was in college." He hesitated, trying to find the right words to say. "And I wanted to let you know that if…you need to talk…don't hesitate to get me."

"Oh." Ruby's shoulders fell a little bit. "…Thank you." Her small smile was followed by an awkward silence.

Ironwood cleared his throat. "Um…and be sure to tell Yang the same thing… that I'm here if you both need to chat."

"I will." Ruby's smile grew into a warm one. "Thank you, Mr. Ironwood."

He returned the smile, "Anytime, kiddo." He turned his attention back to the class as Ruby went back over to Yang.

"Alright class, do the usual routine!" He said through the mic, and everyone started the workout regimen.

"What did he need?" Yang asked when Ruby caught up to her.

"He wants us to know that if we ever need to talk about… mom… to not hesitate to get him. I guess he knew her from college."

"Oh." Yang said with a faltered smile. "That's nice of him."

"Yeah." Ruby looked down slightly and Yang pulled her into a half-hug.

"If you need, you can always talk to me too, Ruby-doo." Yang said after a few seconds of silence.

"Same to you, Yang-a-tang." Ruby said as the girls pulled out of their small hug, laughing lightly at their silly nicknames for each other.

Suddenly, Ironwood sounded a whistle, and the class formed a semi circle around him.

"Alright class, get into two teams!" he said while opening a sack of red and blue jerseys. "Red team on the right side of the gym, blue team on the left!"

"Yours or ours?" A red-headed girl asked when everyone divided themselves amongst two teams.

He gave her a quizzical look, "…Mine!" He turned back to the jerseys and threw them to the students. "After this we are going to have a football unit, because you aren't very good at catching!" He said teasingly as the students were failing miserably at catching their jerseys, and the class laughed.

The girl from earlier teased back, "Either that or you're a lousy throw!"

The class laughed again when Ironwood furrowed his brows and stuck his tongue out at her.

"The rules will be the same," he instructed, "if you hit someone in the face, you're disqualified! If you get hit by the opposing team, or go into their territory, you're out! If a ball is caught, the person who threw it is out, but if the person who caught it drops it before throwing it, than _they_ are out! Last team standing wins! Any questions?"

The red head raised her hand.

"Yes, Nora?" Ironwood asked.

"Do bugs yawn?" She asked.

He blinked twice, " _What?"_

"Do bugs yawn?" The girl, Nora, asked again.

"She has been wondering about this for a few days now," A calm looking boy interjected, "I wouldn't worry too much about it."

Ironwood shared a puzzled look with the rest of the class and cleared his throat, "….Does anyone have any _other_ questions?"

Nora raised her hand again, but the calm boy gently put her arm back down.

"…..Alright then…..you may begin!" Ironwood sounded the whistle.

Both teams quickly ran to the center of the gym to grab a dodge ball, but were careful as to not get hit with one of them. Ruby skillfully grabbed two of them, and tossed one to Blake. She and Ruby were on the Blue Team, and Yang was on the Red Team. The girl, Nora, was also on the Red Team, as well as her calm friend. When Ruby looked around the gym for a good angle to throw her ball from, she duly noticed Weiss was the Blue Team as well.

' _Great,_ ' she thought as she threw the ball in her hand, ' _first, we have the same classes, and now we are on the same team._ ' Ruby leaned to the right to dodge a ball that flew at her. ' _What even is her problem? I only crashed into her, it's not that big of a dea-"_ Ruby was suddenly thrown off guard as she ran into the girl in question.

"Seriously?!" Weiss yelled in a whisper, "Are you serious?!"

"I'm sorry!" Ruby whispered back, trying to regain her composure.

"Oh, you _better_ be!" Weiss scowled, "What happened to staying ten feet away from me?!"

Ruby suddenly felt daring and scowled back, she pulled them aside to avoid getting unwanted attention, and surprisingly Weiss let her, "Look, what is your problem?! I _get it_ , I crashed into you, and I apologized! I didn't mean to make you upset or anything, and quite frankly, it most likely hurt me than it hurt you!" she swiftly pointed at the bandage on her forehead, "I don't get why you had to make a big deal out of it, but I promise you, it's not worth holding a grudge over!"

Weiss looked stumped, but it quickly turned into anger, "How _dare_ you-"

"How dare _me_?! No, Weiss, _I'm_ not the one in the wrong here! I just want to know why your so mean to everyone! What do you have against people?!"

Weiss furrowed her eyebrows and her eyes widened. Her jaw clenched so hard Ruby thought her teeth would break; the look in her eyes was enough to make her regret her confrontation completely. "That. Is _none_. Of your business."

Her voice hitched.

Ruby blinked and gave her a look mixed of confusion and concern. Weiss stormed past her and put her hand up to her eyes for a split second.

' _Is she…'_ Ruby turned around and watched her walk off.

' _Did I just make her cry…?'_ Ruby blinked.

 _..._

' _What just happened?'_

Ruby sighed as she continued playing the game. She was still dumbfounded over what happened, and she honestly felt kind of bad for making her cry… if she _was_ crying… she almost cried, at least, but it was still enough to not feel too great about.

Ruby decided to shrug it off for the time being, and ran over to Blake to see if she needed any help.

"Hey Ruby," she greeted as she chucked a ball at Yang and missed, "mind helping me take down your sister?" she asked with a smirk.

"Not at all," Ruby smiled back, "after all, I have a bet to win."

Blake laughed. "What did you bet on?"

Ruby only told Blake half it; wanting to protect Yang's secret. "If I lose, I can't eat _any_ sweets for two weeks."

Blake laughed again. "That's some bet, alright."

"Yep!" Ruby said as she threw another ball at Yang, who once again dodged it.

"Nice try Ruby, but I'm not losing!" She yelled.

"We'll see about that!' Ruby yelled back, "I have Blake on my team!"

Blake smiled, "Thanks Ruby, but keep in mind Yang has Nora, Ren, and Sun on her team, who are much more athletic than I am."

"They're your friends, right? Yang told me all about the mischief they cause." Ruby suddenly stepped to the side, dodging a ball Yang threw at her.

"Yeah, they can be a lot to handle, that's for sure."

Ruby giggled, "They prank you too, huh?"

"Oh, you wouldn't believe the things-" Blake ducked from a ball and hopped back up, "-they get into. Heck, I've finally had enough of it and got back at them."

"Let me guess, the foodfight?"

Blake let out a short laugh, "Yep! But of course I have detention now, so despite my efforts, I'm still stuck with them!." There wasn't any malice in Blake's words, and Ruby could see a mixture of love and amusement in her eyes.

It made Ruby remember how much she truly missed her best friend.

"What?" Blake smiled, "you're spacing out."

Ruby smiled at her warmly, "Nothing~"

The girls were thrown off guard as a ball bounced off of Blake's arm.

"Hey!" Yang yelled, "No having childhood trio moments without me!"

Blake and Ruby let out a boisterous laugh. "I guess I'm out," Blake grinned, "get revenge for me, okay?"

"Got it!" Ruby smirked.

Blake nodded at her and went to go sit out with the other students who had been hit. Ruby picked up another ball and threw it across the gym, hitting a guy in the shoulder.

"Yes!" She whispered to herself.

Thirty minutes passed, and the Blue Team was failing miserably. They had about ten members left standing, while the Red Team had more than double that amount. The people still standing consisted of Ruby, Weiss, some guy named Yatsuhashi, Yang, Nora's calm friend, and another handful of random students. As another one of their members got hit, Ruby took out two of the Red Team's members in a row. Ruby worked as hard as she could, determined to win the bet. The other students worked hard as well, though they only wanted to win the game. Ruby ran to the other side of the Blue Team's territory, dodging the colorful spheres being thrown at her. As she ran she picked up a purple ball and threw it, hitting the calm looking boy in the leg.

"Ren no!" Nora yelled.

"Sorry Nora," he said as he joined her in sitting out, "I couldn't dodge it quickly enough. That girl has a good throw."

"Who is she anyway? I don't recognize her." Nora asked with her hand on her chin in thought.

"She's Yang's little sister." Blake answered, joining the conversation. "She just transferred from Vale Academy."

"Oooooooh! _She's_ Yang's sister?" Nora asked with a tone of interest. "We'll have to meet her after the match!"

Ren nodded his head in agreement.

"Who's Yang's sister?" A muscular, blond haired Faunus asked as he walked over to them.

"Hi Sun," Blake greeted, and pointed toward her, "that girl over there; her name's Ruby."

"Oh. I never would have guessed _she_ was her sister." Sun said while swaying his monkey tail.

"… They have different moms," Blake commented while sitting down next to Nora. "which is why she went to a different school."

"Why did she move here?" Nora asked.

"That's up to Ruby or Yang to tell you." Blake said, knowing it wasn't her place to tell them.

There was a comfortable silence. The group of friends decided to watch the rest of the game to see which team would win, surprised when they noticed how the Blue Team already divided the Red Team by about half its size. But on the other hand, the Red Team still had seven people, while the Blue Team now had three.

Ruby was working rapidly, picking up ball after ball and throwing them at the other team. She was about to throw another one at Yang, but never got the chance as Ironwood blew the whistle to pause the game.

"Alright! Before you continue, I would like each of the remaining team members to come up with a strategy on how to win the match. You have five minutes!" Ironwood blew the whistle again, signifying the start of their timer.

The Red team huddled up, and Ruby met up with Yatsuhashi in the middle of their side of the gym. Ruby frowned and felt a mixture of emotions as Weiss calmly walked over, not even sparing Ruby a glance. The snowy haired girl cleared her throat and looked at Yatsuhashi.

"You. Keep doing what you are doing. You're the one who took out most of the members."

Yatsuhashi gave a single nod, and Ruby guessed he wasn't much of a talker. She looked at Weiss right as she turned to her, and they both stared at each other with a painfully awkward silence.

Yatsuhashi looked between the two quizzically, but didn't say anything.

"Uh… Weiss, I-"

"No," she interrupted. "It's not your place to apologize. Let's just put everything aside for now, and focus on the game."

Ruby raised her eyebrows and blinked. She wasn't expecting that. "O-okay…"

Weiss let out a stiff sigh, "Good….now, what should we do for our plan of attack?"

Yatsuhashi shook his head slightly, and Ruby twirled her thumbs.

"…I…have a plan." Ruby said, looking at Weiss as if she were asking permission.

"...Go ahead." She said.

"Okay, here's what I think…"

The three huddled closer to keep what they were saying a little more discreet. After the five minutes, Ironwood blew the whistle again.

"Alright, time's up," he said, "you may begin… now!"

As the whistle sounded, the teams got back into position.

"Alright, if we're gonna go through with this, we have to do it _together_." Ruby said, and Weiss and Yatsuhashi nodded. They all got into their positions, but before they could start, Weiss cleared her throat.

"Ruby?" she said.

Ruby startled a bit, not expecting Weiss to want to talk to her. "Yeah?"

The snowy girl opened her mouth and closed it, nearly choking on her own words, "I… I'm sorry."

Ruby felt the air around them lighten up, although she was now even more confused than before.

"…I'll explain later." Weiss said, "But you're right. We have to be together on this if we really want to win. So…" she paused, "let's do our best."

Ruby nodded determinedly and swallowed the lump in her throat. "Got it."

The girls put their attention back to the game, and for some reason, Ruby smiled slightly.

' _We can do this. Together.'_

 _To be continued_


	6. Chapter 5: New Friendships

Roses and Thorns

Chapter 5: New Friendships

Ruby, Weiss, and Yatsuhashi got into position. The rest of the game was three against seven, but they believed the plan Ruby brewed up would work, but only if they did things right. They had to admit, it was a ridiculous plan that came with sacrifices, but they were determined to win. Both teams were in their planned positions, waiting for the other team to strike first.

"You ready?" Ruby asked her small team.

"Yes," Weiss answered, while Yatsuhashi nodded his head once.

"Alright…" Ruby grinned and picked up a yellow ball, "…then let's do this!" She chucked her ball at the Red Team, signifying the start of the rest of the match.

"Let's go!" Yang yelled at her team, and the gymnasium erupted in excitement.

Spheres of all colors were thrown across the gym, and from that point on, the game played out like a full-on war. As Ruby, Weiss, and Yatsuhashi dodged the Red Team's attack, they went into phase one of their plan: eliminate the Red Team down to three members, so both teams were even.

This step was Yatsuhashi's job, as he was one of the ones who brought the Red Team down to seven members. He swiftly dodged any ball that came his way, picked up one after another, and skillfully threw them at their opponents, taking out two of their members. Yatsuhashi was about to get hit in the chest by a purple ball, but Ruby ran in front of him and caught it, getting the one who threw it out of the game. Weiss quickly took out another one of the Red Team's members, marking the end of phase one. The Blue team immediately went into phase two: distract and sacrifice.

Yatsuhashi ran to the right side of their territory, were Weiss was at. At the same time, Weiss ran to where he was at, trading places. As they ran past each other, Weiss' foot hooked onto Yatsuhashi's, causing them both to trip and fall. The Red Team stopped for a split second, distracted by what happened, and it gave Ruby just enough time to get out another Red Team member, only leaving Yang and a guy with flared grey hair.

"It was a distraction!" Yang shouted.

"Smooth move," the guy said, "but not smooth enough!" He chucked a ball at Weiss, but Yatsuhashi played the sacrifice part by moving in the way of the ball, causing himself to get hit instead. The last phase of their plan needed to be done by Weiss and Ruby, so it was up him to be the sacrifice.

Yatsuhashi gave the girls a thumbs up, and they returned the gesture with a smile.

"Ready for phase three?" Ruby asked, turning to Weiss.

"As I'll ever be," she replied, "but just for the record, this plan is absolutely ridiculous, and we only have a slim chance of actually winning."

"Then I guess we'll really have to put in our best effort." Ruby grinned.

Weiss rolled her eyes, "You know, your enthusiasm is almost annoying."

Ruby felt a small pang hurt, but decided to accept that it was the closest compliment she was going to get out of the princess.

"Alright then," she said, turning back to the game, "phase three begin!"

Yang and her teammate were stumped. "Phase three?" The grey-haired guy asked.

Yang gave him a puzzled look and shrugged her shoulders until suddenly, Ruby and Weiss threw dodgeballs at them rapidly, beginning the third and final phase: tag team and take out.

"Oh, that's what she meant!" Yang yelled, then the realization dawned on her that she needed to _dodge._ She and the other guy started running around the gym comically, letting out yelps and shouts as they were bombarded with colorful spheres.

At this point, everyone in the sidelines were cheering for their teams, excitement filled the room as they wondered who would win. It was down to two versus two, and from the looks of it, the Blue Team was just ahead. Yang and her teammate started to get overwhelmed, as they had no idea where the Blue Team's sudden burst of energy came from, and it got to the point where they abandoned their own plan and only focused on jumping out of the way of the attack.

Ruby and Weiss worked rapidly, smiling at how their plan was working, though deep down they were both surprised at how well they were working together. They gave each other a quick glance, communicating silently, both agreeing to start the 'tag team' part of phase three.

Yang and the other guy nearly smacked into each other while dodging the attack, and Yang turned to him in a panic, "Mercury! We need to pull together!" she yelled.

"I know!" he replied, " I-AHHHH!"

Suddenly, Ruby and Weiss were only throwing dodgeballs at _him_. They tag teamed against him and threw him off balance. He was easily taken out as Weiss made one final blow, hitting him in the shoulder.

"Mercury!" Yang yelled dramatically as he went down. "Ah crap!"

"Crap is right Yang," Ruby smirked, "because now is the time to take you out!"

At that, Weiss charged forward at the blonde but didn't cross into the Red territory. As she ran, she did a smooth summersault and picked up a ball and threw it as soon as she was back on her feet. As Yang was distracted by the ball Weiss threw, Ruby picked up a red one and slung it back, ready to throw it at top speed, and it was then that everything seemed to go into slow motion.

Yang focused on the ball Weiss threw as she jerked herself to the right to dodge it, watching it pass her with the most ridiculous surprised expression Ruby had ever seen. Everyone else in the sidelines were jumping and cheering for the Blue Team, and even Ironwood had joined in on the chanting. As slow motion continued, Ruby put all of her energy in her swing and threw the ball with a grunt, watching as it flew through the air at Yang. She could have sworn that somewhere in the distance, the song "What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong was playing, either that or her imagination was tricking her. Either way, she watched with a determined gleam in her eye as Yang noticed Ruby's ball coming at her a second too late, and the ball collided into her with a loud ' _smack_ ', knocking her off her feet. Yang slowly plummeted to the ground as the ball rebounded into the air above her, spinning in what one would call the most beautiful rotation they'd ever seen as it bounced back onto the sleek wooden floor beside her head, the sound of the impact echoing throughout the gymnasium.

It was then, everything went back to its normal speed.

Now in a situation like this, the Blue Team would be cheering, Ruby and Weiss would be congratulating each other, and Ironwood would be blowing the whistle, ending the match and naming the Blue Team the champions… but unfortunately, this was not the case. As a matter of fact, the room was _completely_ silent. Everyone's hearts had stopped in that moment, and they all stood there shocked, taking in the scene before them. Even Mercury sat up a little; an expression of utter disbelief written across his face, as well as Weiss and Ruby's. Because not only had the ball hit Yang; it also hit her in the _face_ … meaning that Ruby and Weiss were disqualified.

Both teams lost the match.

' _I goofed up._ ' Ruby thought, ' _I goofed up real bad._ ' She still couldn't believe she didn't aim correctly. She was intending to hit Yang in the shoulder but misjudged her aim in the heat of the moment. Things were going so smoothly, but she messed it all up in the last, long second of the game.

"I'm so sorry Yang!" Ruby apologized for the umpteenth time as she changed into her clothes.

"It's alright Ruby," Yang laughed, "you did great!" Yang smiled at her sister proudly, "But who would've thought you could come up with an awesome plan like that?"

"…Thanks?" Ruby didn't know if she should take it as a compliment or not. "But seriously, I didn't mean to hit you in the face."

"It's okay." Yang laughed again, there was a huge red mark on her forehead from where the ball hit her, and if one looked closely, they could see the company logo split in the center of the area. "Now I can pretend I'm the Avatar!"

"Well, oh mighty Avatar," Blake teased with a smile, "who won the bet?"

"Rubles and I decided we both get penalties," Yang let out a small, defeated sigh, "so I guess you could say we both won _and_ lost."

Blake hummed a small note. "Well, good luck with that."

"Thanks." Ruby and Yang said dejectedly.

"That. Was. Su _perawsome_!" Nora yelled while fist pumping, causing the girls to jump.

"Nora! You scared the flying flip out of me!" Yang yelled with her hand on her heart in shock, the others were in the same position.

"Flips' don't fly Yang. But still, that was _so cool_!" Nora started making a bunch of ridiculous gestures to match her words. "The way you and Weiss went all commando on Mercury! How Yatsuhashi tragically sacrificed himself to save Weiss like a knight in shining green armor, how Yang got slam dunked IN THE FACE after that totally _awesome_ maneuver you and Weiss pulled! That was _hilarious,_ no offense Yang, and the way you three worked together was extreme! Best. Dodgeball. Game. _Ever_!"

At this point, Nora was frazzled with excitement, with a big grin was glued onto her face as she looked at Ruby, who was standing blankly in place trying to register everything the wild girl said.

"…Th…Thanks…" Ruby's voice was a bit shaky due to the amount of praise she was getting. ' _And I thought_ I _was a motor mouth._ '

Nora took Ruby's hand and shook it rapidly. "By the way, I'm Nora! Nice to meetchya!"

"N-n-n-nice-e-e to-o me-et yo-u-u to-o-oo!" Ruby's voice bounced around due to how Nora was still rapidly shaking her hand. "…Ple-e-e-ase le-et go-o-o-o."

Nora did as she was asked and turned to Blake and Yang. "We _have_ to introduce her to the others!" She said while bouncing in place.

"Do you want to Ruby?" Yang asked.

"Sure." Ruby smiled while rubbing her arm in slight discomfort. "Nora, I think you did something to my arm."

"Oh, you're fine." She snorted. "It happens to everyone I shake hands with!"

Ruby didn't know how to respond.

"Well, let's go find them," Blake said while motioning for them to follow her.

"Alright, but I'm not shaking hands with anyone anymore."

They all laughed at that. As soon as they were in the gym, Nora shouted "Be right back!" and ran off.

"Is she usually like this?" Ruby asked.

"No. She's far less hyper than normal." Yang answered.

Ruby blinked a few times in disbelief.

Suddenly, Nora reappeared with who Ruby assumed were Ren and Sun.

"Ruby, this is Ren, he is like, the most _perfect_ student. And it's crazy because we've been together for _sooo_ long, well not 'together- together' not that I'm not saying he's not handsome, he _is_ handsome but that would just be weird, right? Right. What was I thinking? Haha! Anyway, I hope you two can get along! Also, this is Sun! He is _super_ strong and nice and pretty cool to hang out with. He is also one of the most loyal people I know, though sometimes he can be a real trouble maker, but then again, I can too! Anyway, Sun, Ren, this is Ruby, Yang's sister! I don't know too much about her other than that she _slays_ at dodgeball, but she also seems pretty cool! I just hope that all of us can become the best of friends!"

The entire group stood silently as they finished processing everything Nora said. After a few seconds, Ren spoke up.

"Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Ruby. I would shake your hand, but considering how you've already met Nora, your arm must be a bit tired." He smiled.

Ruby chuckled. "Yeah, it is; and it is nice to meet you too, you as well Sun.

Sun flicked his tail. "You too little red." He smiled.

"So, shall we go to lunch? Blake asked when the bell rang.

"Oooooh! I'm so hungry I could eat a horse!" Nora grinned while skipping out of the gym doors.

"I'm going to go make sure she doesn't really eat a horse because the last time she said that she actually tried to," Ren said while following after Nora. "We'll meet up with you in the cafeteria."

"She…tried to…eat…a"

"Don't question it Ruby," Yang said, "it's for the best.

"O-okay."

"Anyway, let's head out. I can already hear the banana pancakes calling my name." Sun flicked his tail happily and headed out of the gym.

Ruby did a double take, "They serve banana pancakes?!"

"Welcome to Beacon," Yang said with a hint of mockery, "the only high school that literally has an _all you can eat_ buffet."

"Woah," Ruby said with a delighted look in her eyes, though it quickly faded. "Now I wish I didn't make my penalty 'no sweets for two weeks.'" She hung her head slightly, and as if her stomach understood her, it growled in a low note. "It's gonna be alright." she patted her stomach dejectedly, "we'll make it through this together."

Blake and Yang smiled at Ruby's antics. She almost resembled that of a kicked puppy.

"You'll be fine Ruby, it's just two weeks." Blake smiled supportively.

"Oooh no she won't," Yang grinned, "this girl eats more sweets within a month than how many pounds I can lift."

"That…isn't very healthy." Blake turned to Ruby with a slightly worried look.

" _Thanks_ , Yang. And yeah, I know." Ruby said with a defeated expression.

All of a sudden, all three girls' stomachs growled loudly, leaving them blushing slightly.

"Let's go eat," Blake said.

"Agreed."

The three girls headed out of the gym and made their way to the lunch room.

' _I really wish I didn't make that my penalty…'_ Ruby thought once again. ' _But hey, at least I'll get some answers from Yang.'_

 _To be continued_


End file.
